Brayside Crush
by outlaw4rc
Summary: The Mane 6 and Spike head to the beach town of Brayside Beach. New friends are made, rivalries form, and two ponies find themselves questioning whether they are truly just friends. The treequel to Return to Flight and Top Wings.
1. Where It All Began

**Chapter 1 - Where It All Began**

_What's wrong with me?_

Rainbow Dash pondered that question as she rested on a caboose's railing, watching the wooden tracks casually pass below her. Shadows continually cast on her and the multi-car train, many of them created by the pine trees towering over the railroad's path, all lined by loose gravel. The jagged Stallihorn mountain range covered the entire horizon, their peeks hidden thanks to dense drab clouds hovering at altitudes higher than Cloudsdale. On occasion, the flaming sun said its hello through a hole but the ever-changing landscape ensured the air would be no more than mildly warm. A gentle wind rode down the slopes and brushed Rainbow's cheek but she paid no attention to it, even when it moved a few strands of yellow hair into her sightline.

Then, her world became nippy and dark. She had entered another tunnel, number twenty-three based on her lackadaisical count, but enough to assume that the train was closer to its final destination than its departure point, Ponyville. As she sighed, the caboose exited the pony-made hole and back into open air where she heard the sound of rushing water. Curious, she turned her head left, finding a river running alongside the train. Its banks teemed with baby trees, shrubs and a few critters eagerly running into the foaming water for a nice cool bath. Looking further downriver, the stream bent away from the tracks and carved its way between two mountain peaks. She had already seen many sights on this train ride, all of it familiar, but this particular one struck a nerve.

_This is the closest I've gotten to Brayside._

Suddenly, the train jolted to a grinding halt, all but tossing the mare overboard. Before Rainbow could guess why, a hiss over the PA system drew her attention.

_Attention, Stallihorn Zephyr patrons. This is your conductor speaking. We apologize for the stop but we've just received reports of severe gusts at the Prancemotory Summit up ahead. Don't worry, folks. We already have a weather pony taking care of it. Once we get an all clear, we'll continue on to Brayside Beach and San Prancisco without delay._

Rainbow turned her attention skywards; she expected a pegasus slicing through the air to give the train and its passengers safe passage.

Nothing. Maybe she was too far away to see this pony, she thought. If she had the drive, Rainbow would take flight and search out for them but something held her in place. She had no answer why this was so, much like how she couldn't answer her own question.

After a prolonged eye blink, she was instantly thousands of feet above where she had been just under a thick layer of clouds. Beneath her was the snaking river and the railroad's path but sans the rails and the accompanying tunnels. In this time, those existed solely on blueprints secured in a shack a few miles away from here. The work to make it all a reality came down to what looked like ants moving across the uneven terrain shoveling dirt, pushing wheelbarrows, laying down ties or gnawing at vertical rock with pickaxes. She could've watched them all day if it wasn't for a grey hoof wiping through her sights.

"Are you zoning out on me, Rainbow," asked a young, somewhat squeaky voice.

"Huh?"

A turn of the head and there he was, a slender stallion with blue forelocks flowing across his forehead in a swoop.

"Sorry, Swift," she said, adding a nervous chuckle. "Guess I've been really out of it lately."

He smiled just as the sun broke through the clouds and shone over him. "No worries. I hear ya. I feel like we've been doing weather duty for this construction project for years when it's really… four months, I think."

"Long enough that you've changed your hairstyle."

Swift ruffled his mane, which had a lighter shade of blue exactly like his tail. "Not that again. I've already told you I just thought I should spend a few seconds brushing it. I could always change it back."

"No," she blurted. "It's okay. You look—" Her next few words spilled out of her mouth. "Um, it's fine."

They spend the next few moments watching a few workers laying objects too far to discern on a mountain's face. Then then ran all the way to a deep pit made of sandbags where a stallion soon pushed down on a handle - construction on tunnel number twenty-three had begun.

"Just a few more explosions and we can call this project a wrap," said Rainbow with a firm nod. "Good thing for my wings because all this flying back and forth between here and Ponyville"—she stretched her back—"that's a lot of tough miles. Don't get me wrong. It's okay because it means hanging out with you but I could do without the work."

Swift turned slight away from her. "About that. So, what's going to happen once we're done here? We'll finally have some actual free time again."

Her face twisted in discomfort. "Um, why do you ask? Did you have something in mind?"

After a lengthy pause, "How about joining me for the Aloha Summer Festival?"

"The what now?"

"It's one of Brayside's traditions, a big party to mark the end of summer. This year, we're holding it the first weekend after the railroad's finished. Since you haven't been to Brayside yet, I thought you could finally come over. You know, see the town, meet my friends, and do stuff together."

Tha-thump! Her heart quickened its pace. "Um, what kind of stuff?"

"Um—" His face color shifted toward red "—friend… stuff. Things friends would do together." He slapped his forehead. "Y–your friends! They can come too! Yeah, one wicked time at the beach, all of us." Another pause, "But no pressure! If you're not up for it, no worries."

This was a no brainer answer and yet, panic froze her lips tight.

"Never mind," he said, downcast. "We can do something—"

"Okay!" Rainbow blurted.

He pulled away from her slightly.

"Sorry," said Rainbow, fighting to hide her embarrassment. "Yeah, I guess we could hang out. I mean, that's what good friends do, right?"

The stallion's mouth moved but he made no sound; this wasn't what she remembered at all.

Voice cracking, "Right?"

Fog rolled into her imagination, covering the entire region in seconds.

"Right?" she whispered.

_Tweeeeet! _The locomotive's shrill whistle knocked her out of her daydream and right onto the shaking floor. Once more, the train was in motion; the PA system expectedly crackled to life.

_This is your conductor. We've finally been given the all clear! It'll be a little gusty but there should be no further issues once we pass over the summit. Again, our apologies for the inconvenience!_

"Lousy conductor," she mumbled as she staggered back to all fours. "I'm gonna… wait. Who's that?"

A few hundred feet above her, a grey stallion streaked across the cloudy skies.

She filled her chest with air and then bellowed, "Hey! Hold on! Where are you going, Sw—"

Mistaken identity – the pony that stopped at her call had wavy blonde hair rather than the expected blue. Thankfully, she had already met this stallion before, furthering relieving the tension had it been Swift Flying after all.

Rainbow greeted the newcomer with a smirk. "Well, well. If it isn't Light Shower. Heh. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

After landing on the caboose, he ran his foreleg over his flowing forelock, smoothing out a few loose ends. "Far too long, girl. So much fun working together busting some storm clouds for those few days with you and that wonderful team Ponyville team of yours."

"You mean working that mouth of yours with Raindrops and Thunderlane." Rubbing her chin, "Hmmm, what did Swift call your little group?" She chuckled, "Oh yeah. That's right. The Lazy Trifecta."

Light Shower whipped back his head. "Hmf! As second in command, I was simply doing my duty developing good relations between the Brayside and Ponyville weather ponies. Nothing more."

"Sure you were. Oh, and let me guess. For all the _work_ you did, Swift _rewarded_ you with weather duties on this side of the Stallihorns all by yourself."

"For the record, I volunteered—" His ears folded "—involuntarily, Monday, Wednesday _and _Friday."

Rainbow slapped the railings, "Ha, ha, ha! Burn!"

His frown receded with each chortle. "I suppose I earned that one. You know, there was a time when Swift would've looked the other way."

She rubbed an invisible medal hanging over her chest, "Yeah, well. What can I say? Some of my awesome leadership skills must have rubbed off on him."

"Hmm, yes." Shower gave her a quick hug. "Well, I'd love to chat with you some more but I'd bet Swift sent somepony to spy on me. Oh, by the way, he told me that if I saw you, to let you know that he got called into special meeting at town hall today but will meet you at the station as promised." Winking, "Believe me, he's so eager to see you again."

"Oh." Rainbow suddenly found fascination in the floor. "A–alright."

"Bon Voyage!" said the departing stallion.

She clung onto the railing and waved a goodbye. Rainbow followed his ascension into the low-lying clouds, disappearing close to a ridge. Once out of sight, she mused about what would happen over the next few days. Despite the three weeks between the initial agreement and today, her mind was no less uncluttered with mystery.

_What's wrong with me? _Rainbow bopped the side of her head. _It's just a nice, little four-day vacation… with Swift. I mean, everything's cool between us. _

Rainbow looked behind her, triggering a time warp. She had just landed in the same caboose, holding onto a strip with four pictures on it. Swift stood in front of her with mild surprise, not expecting that she'd catch up to his train just to make a delivery. They talked, they hugged and then a magnetic force pulled them closer together and set her heart fluttering with warmth unlike any other. A whistle awoke her senses to what was a mistake, an error, a misstep over a solid red line – she made sure Swift Flying knew that.

"You and I as friends? That's totally cool, and it totally works for us, but I… I want to keep it that way. You understand, right?"

Fast-forward four months since that cool orange afternoon and that statement had eroded to dust. She might as well had never said it in the first place.

_What's wrong with me?_

Then, a gust grabbed onto the caboose's door and slammed it against the outside wall.

"Not again," she grumbled as she walked over to close it. "They really need to fix the lock on… this. Hmmmmm."

Abiding with her gut feeling, Rainbow stuck her head into the caboose's cabin. Aside from a sink, tables, couch and a few cabinets, she found nothing extraordinary or out of place.

"I thought I saw somepony in here," she said, stroking her muzzle. "Oh, well."

The moment she shut the door, Fluttershy peered from behind a tablecloth. Once she felt safe to do so, she sneaked through the caboose, past one sliding and through another leading into the rearmost passenger cabin. Then she carefully peeked through a rounded glass pane where she caught a glimpse of her friend, standing alone out in the elements.

After a melancholy sigh, Fluttershy slid down her head from the window. "Why won't she come inside?"

A hoof touched her back, "Why not just ask her, darling?"

"Eeeeeeek!" Fluttershy responded to a surprise like any other; flipping over like a pancake on a griddle. Now she had a view of light fixtures and a face full of Rarity shaking her head.

"Apologies, my dear." She offered a foreleg, "But you really must work on not getting startled so easily."

She accepted her help, "I'm sorry. It's just that I'm really worried about Rainbow Dash. She's been out there since we left Ponyville and she hasn't said why."

Rarity had a look at Rainbow. "I'm certain it has something to do with that Swift Flying fellow. A bite of adolescent infatuation, perhaps?"

"That sounds terrible!" said the shivering pegasus. "I'll fetch my first aid kit!"

The unicorn tittered. "Oh, Fluttershy! I'm saying that she has a crush on him, darling."

"You think so? Are you sure? I know we've teased her about it before but I honestly thought it wasn't true. I mean, she's never been interested in anything _cutesy _wootsie and I've been her friend since we were just fillies."

Rarity tapped her muzzle, "Quite true and that makes me wonder. Do you recall when we were away at Manehattan back in the spring? She never did tell us exactly what she did all those days. If she had to invoke a Pinkie Promise between her and Swift to keep it a secret, whatever happened must have been _big_." Spreading her hooves, "Life-altering big!"

Fluttershy stepped away from her, "Then maybe we should just leave things alone."

Rarity grabbed her closer, "But we can't! We simply must know what's going on! Matters of the heart are my specialty!"

"Um, but what about your crush with Prince Blueblood? You thought—"

"_That_ was a rare moment of extremely poor judgment," she curtly responded. "Come. We shall talk to her, _together_!"

Before Rarity could slide open the passenger car door, Pinkie Pie did so from the other side.

"Halt!" She blocked the doorway, holding up a firm hoof. "You shall not pass."

Rarity's long eyelashes twitched. "How long were you hiding there, Pinkie?"

"Ever since Twilight asked me to watch over you." She squeed.

Then, one of the many cabin doors behind the group moved just enough for Twilight's head to emerge.

"Aha! Going to the _dining_ car, Rarity?" said the bookworm unicorn, raising an eyebrow. "What did I tell you about leaving Rainbow Dash alone?"

Pouting her lips, "But it's not fair. You let Fluttershy go."

"That's because I thought if she was willing to talk with anypony, it would be her. Well, that and I had a feeling she'd chicken out anyways."

Fluttershy blushed, "Well, I tried to."

Twilight flashed a smile. "I know you did. Now, back inside, you three."

"But now I _really _must go to the dining car," Rarity whined. "I'm absolutely famished."

"Fine." She motioned toward the front of the train, "You can go, _along _with Pinkie Pie."

Twilight slid the door wide open to allow Fluttershy by before closing it tight. The unicorn then took a seat next to on one of the two burgundy benches situated across from each other, the space in between taken by a thin table. Spike, sitting on her end closest to the small square window, found the constant train chugging noise a relaxing enough melody to sleep with, even with the constant shifts of ambient light. Across from her, Applejack sat with the lid of her Stetson covering her eyes but with her occasional fidgeting, she presumed the accommodation were not to her liking. That or that she's a pony not to share a tent with if having personal space mattered.

Fluttershy leaned into Twilight's ear. "Did you find out why Applejack's been crabby lately?"

"Not yet," she responded in kind. "All I know is that she was looking forward to this trip until yesterday. So far, I haven't been able to get a word out of her."

"Do you think it has anything to do with Rainbow Dash?"

"Nope," Applejack interrupted, crossing her forelegs.

Twilight recoiled. "Oh, um, hey. You didn't hear what we said, did you?"

"Eeyup."

A lump slid down Twilight's throat. "Um, okay. Well, if you don't wanna say anything—"

The cowpony slid a sheet onto the table. "You remember when I sent over my request for a food booth at the Aloha Summer Festival last month? Take a guess what happened."

Fluttershy covered her mouth. "Oh, no! You didn't get one? I'm so sorry."

"No, no, Sugarcube. I _did _get one." She pointed at an area on the paper. "_That_ space right there."

Twilight leaned forwards to examine what was a schematic of the festival's general layout. A shaded box indicated the exact location, as did an angry face drawn with a red marker. "Hmm. Well, it is one of the smaller spaces and it's not exactly close to the entrance."

"It's the worst one available!" Applejack banged the counter. "Of all the nerve! I'm telling ya it's one of them conspira-whatevers!"

"Conspiracy," the unicorn corrected. "That's a bit of a stretch, isn't it?"

"It ain't, Twi! If there's something I can say about the whole Apple family, no matter where in Equestria, we've been good at selling our apples." Applejack slouched on the table. "Well, everywhere except for Brayside. You've got the Pineapples, the Mangos, the Bananers, plenty of competition that does _everything_ to try to keep us out. I bet one of them convinced whoever's organizing this shindig to put me in such a lousy spot. That's the only explanation that makes sense."

Twilight gave her a friendly tap. "Applejack, I think you're taking this a little too personally. If they really wanted you out, you wouldn't even have a booth in the first place. Maybe you can talk to the head organizer and see what they can do for you."

"You're darned right I'll be giving that pony a piece of my mind," she grumbled.

"Now, Applejack. We're on vacation here, so please don't go overboard."

The cowpony returned to slouching on the bench. "I ain't promising anything but I'll try. No need for more drama, I suppose."

Fluttershy frowned. "You don't mean Rainbow Dash, do you?"

"Eeyup."

"Aren't you even a _little_ curious on what's going on with her?" asked Twilight. "She's your friend, too, you know."

Applejack shrugged. "She was fine until this morning. Probably got a case of jitterbugs in her belly about this trip or something. Whatever it is, asking Rainbow straight up now ain't gonna get us anywhere."

The cabin door slid to the right. "Ask me what?"

The three mares stared at Rainbow Dash as though she was a phantom that stole other ponies' voices.

Spike rose from his slumber. "Whoa, why is it so quiet around—" His heavy eyes focused on the cyan mare "— oh, hey, Rainbow Dash."

"Hey, Spike, girls."

Applejack scooted closer to the wall, allowing Rainbow to take a seat beside her.

"So, who wanted to ask me something?"

Spike stood on the bench cushion, "I think it's about why you were standing out there by your—"

Fluttershy held the dragon's mouth shut and then whispered to him _"Please forgive me."_

Rainbow feigned a chuckle. "Oh, that. I just, needed to think about… stuff. For two hours."

Other than Spike's unintelligible mumbling and the train's judders, nopony said a word for ten seconds.

Twilight pretended she had a cough. "Yeah, okay. We were just… I thought something was worrying you."

Shaking her head, "It's all right, really. Guess I'm just a little… train sick. Yeah. I gotta have that fresh air."

Rainbow had a sinking feeling and not just because the train was starting to travel downhill. All those eyes on her could only mean her explanation had no buyers. It was time to switch subjects, fast!

"So, um, aren't you all excited about this vacation?"

Spike finally eluded Fluttershy's grasp. "I sure am! Four days of soaking some rays, surfing some waves, gouging on food but you know the best part?" He hopped onto the table with a broom, which he held over his head. "Not having to sweep the Library!"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Well, I can't wait to build a few sandcastles and to read a few books by the ocean."

"Sell some apples," said Applejack, tipping her hat "That'll be a good vacation. Hmm?"

Another visitor arrived into the cabin, this time Rarity levitating a chocolate chip cookie.

"Well, that was an utter waste of time." Rarity tapped the treat onto the table, making a solid thumping sound.. "Simply dreadful. Everything's… Rainbow! Darling, how are you?"

_Ugh! Not again!_ Rainbow stretched her smile. "I'm… fine. We were just talking about how awesome this vacation's gonna be. Where did Pinkie Pie go? I thought she was with you."

Rarity sighed. "Miraculously eating with that the chef dares to call food." She sat next to Twilight. "I suppose I can wait until we reach Brayside Beach. I'm sure Swift or one of his friends can recommend a good place where we can have a more proper meal. Perhaps even have a nice dinner together?"

"Dinner, together?" Rainbow scratched her mane. "Oh. Oh! You meant _all_ of us together. Heh, heh."

"It doesn't have to be. We'll understand if you and Swift want to spend some time, _alone_."

"A–alone?"

Suddenly, the room became a sauna with the steam coming off her face. Pinkie arrived and caught a case of the giggles.

"Why is your face red? Ooooooo. I bet it was something _embarrassing_." Pinkie closed to within an inch of her nose. "Why, Rainbow? Is it a secret that you don't anypony to know? Things that you don't want to admit because it's may ruin your reputation? Something about this trip that will force you to face things you've never dealt with before?"

Twilight pulled on Pinkie's tail, taking her down onto the floor. "Sorry about that, Rainbow. We're not trying to make you uncomfortable or anything."

Rainbow's pupils darted from side-to-side, "Me? Uncomfortable?" She flicked her mane. "Oh, no, no, no. Why would I be _uncomfortable_? If anything I'm so comfy, I might just, um, take a nap. Wake me when we get there, wontcha?"

Suddenly, Rainbow placed her head on the table and after throwing in a few stretches and yawns, began snoring. While her little act would win her an award for lamest attempt at pretend sleep, at least she no longer had to deal with her friends. To her chagrin, it did nothing to stop the gears from turning inside her head, constantly working on the nagging question that just wouldn't go away.

_What's wrong with me?_

Rainbow had no bona-fide answers – just the facts that kept her sanity in check. She was Rainbow Dash, a fast flier, a loyal pony and a mare that draws the line of relationships at friends. That was enough to sleep on.

Barely.


	2. It's A Brayside World

**Chapter 2– It's A Brayside World**

"Wake up! We're almost here!"

A hoof shook Rainbow's back, jolting her back into the conscious world. A few eye blinks brought the cabin room back into focus, brightened with rays of light coming from the window. When she moved her head up from the pool of drool on the table, there was Fluttershy sitting by her side. She bore a broad smile that said good afternoon – she spoke the greeting anyways.

"How long was I out," Rainbow asked while yawning.

"About an hour," Fluttershy responded. "How are you feeling, Rainbow?"

"Eh. Same old same old." Rainbow then noticed a few open pieces of luggage and candy wrappers strewn around the room. "Where did everypony go?"

Motioning toward the half-open door, "They wanted to get a better view. I was going to join them but I didn't want to leave you all by yourself. The view out of the window is rather small, but that's all I really need."

She muscled Fluttershy through the doorway, "That's good and all but don't worry about me. Go out there and enjoy the sights!"

"But what about you, Rainbow?"

"Um, give a few minutes, wontcha?"

"But—"

Rainbow shut the door and turned the locking knob. She heard Fluttershy jiggle the exterior handle and after a sigh, stepped away.

_Sorry, girl, but I need some time alone._

Once she sat, Rainbow stared straight at the wooden paneling. Her final destination rolled past the window but she couldn't muster the bravery to see this new world. There was no reason she could've been here earlier; Swift had offered at least three prior invitations to visit the area that he called home. With anypony else, Rainbow would've accepted on the spot, anything to hang out outside of work and to meet new ponies at a place with plenty of sand, surf and sun. Yet she had a lame excuse every time: too tired to make the trip, an appointment with a nonexistent doctor and weather work back at Ponyville. Now she had to face reality; the train had safely traversed the Stallihorn range. There was no turning back.

Rainbow let her face fall flat onto the table. _Darnit. I hate feeling this weird. It's not like I'm taking this trip alone. My friends are here, aren't they? We'll be doing lots of fun stuff together, me, Swift, my friends and his friends. It'll be all right._

Her eyes shifted right, only to shift back down.

_C'mon. You can do this. Swift and I settled everything on the train months ago. There's nothing to worry about anymore._

Finally, she turned her head toward the cabin window.

"Whoa!"

Past the small glass pane were the same mountains the train had just crossed, their many peaks not as imposing from this far but they dominated the horizon. The range stood tall over the boundless rolling green hills peppered with lush palm trees, floral bushes and sprawling tropical trees. Dirt roads traversed the variable terrain, passing straw huts of every single color and farmland enclosed by picket fences or brick walls. Within this small square alone was full of life, from the blades of grass dancing in the breeze to the occasional ponies traveling down the paths with an extra spring in their steps. There had to be more than this.

Rainbow unlocked the door and went straight to the much taller and wider windows lining the hallway. She had more majestic purple mountains cocooning all but the edges of sparkling ocean water. Miles of pristine sand lined the shores with small piers jutting out into the water every few miles. Based on the track's general direction, she was heading close to a concentration of buildings close to the water. Some stood no more than five stories but at least three achieved heights taller than Ponyville's town hall. Close to the town center was another pier, this one much longer than the rest and with several vague structures on top of it.

"Is that a Ferris Wheel?" she whispered to herself. "Can't tell from... wait a minute. Why am I looking through here? Duh! I've got wings."

She galloped through the passenger car but after exiting the door, she ran into an orange wall.

"Ow!" The shaken mare staggered backwards. "Hey! Watch where you're—"

Applejack laid belly up on the floor, stars spinning around her head.

"Oops!" She aided the cowpony to all fours. "Applejack, seriously! You really should watch where you're going."

"C-consarn it." She took off her hat and rubbed her head, "Even when you ain't flying, you're crashing into everything."

Rainbow scowled. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Now, out of my way."

She reached the caboose's rear deck, where she found Fluttershy and Rarity impersonating professional photographers through chatter of angles and exposure.

Fluttershy tossed Rarity the camera before embracing Rainbow. "Oh, wonderful! I thought you'd be in there forever! Rarity! Take a picture!"

Pulling away as a light blinded them, "Easy there, Fluttershy. You're making a big deal out of nothing. Hey! You want to join me on the roof? You'll get way better shots up there."

"No, thanks. It's much cooler here in the shade."

"Tell me about it," said Rarity, swiping out the camera for a paper fan. "I adore the scenery but why must it be so _hot? _I'm practically melting here!"

Rainbow's eyelids closed halfway. "You call this hot? It's only like, eighty or so. _Perfect_ beach weather. You two can hide in the wimpy shade. I'm gonna soak in some rays."

She flew up onto the sloped roof and then rested flat on her back, hind legs crossed. That's when her nose noticed a scent of moist freshness with a pinch of salt; she just had to take in some more air.

"Ahhh! Oh, that smells _awesome! _Even Cloudsdale's air scrubber can't match this!"

Slowly, the burning orange sun sapped the cyan mare of energy. Rather than retreat indoors, she stretched her forelegs and watched the palm trees lining the track zip past her sights. The train ride still had a fair amount of minutes left, so squeezing in another nap was no problem at all. She shut out the light, exhaling contently.

"Heh. I can do this all day."

"You might wanna put on some sunscreen, then," said a young voice.

It couldn't be! There was no way! Her eyes opened wide and Rainbow found a stallion – a shadowy figure under the sun's glare – hovering above her head.

"Unless you wanna turn into a tomato."

The newcomer moved to where she could see him clear as the Brayside skies. His aerodynamic frame, that grin with a touch of dorky and a cloud and inverted thunderbolt combination plastered on his flank was no mirage nor another fabrication made from memories.

"S–swift," she stuttered.

"'Sup? Welcome to Brayside, Rainbow!"

Her vocal chords jammed shut, bottling up a torrent of mixed emotions. When she tried moving them, Rainbow managed a squeaky "Hey" while fidgeting which direction the corners of her mouth would move. She ultimately wanted up but they moved only a whisker.

Swift sat next to her, his optimism weltering under the heat. "Shoot. I thought you'd be excited to see me." After a pause, the stallion ruffled loose hairs off his mane, "An–and the town, the town. I mean… being, um, here."

"I am! I am!" Rainbow cleared her throat. "I am. It's just that I wasn't expecting you so soon. I thought you'd be waiting for me at the station."

"Oh. Oh!" Swift chuckled. "I gotcha. You got my message from Light Shower, then?"

"Mhm."

"Well, you see, Blossom and Blitz are still stuck in that meeting. Widget left earlier than I did to the train station but I couldn't find her anywhere. Thought I'd come and see you a bit early." Another awkward pause later, "And your friends too, Rainbow! Y–you get my drift, right?"

His growing awkwardness was a feather brushing her sides. "You're too much, Swift!" she said in between giggles. "I totally hear ya. At least, I think I do."

Swift's head moved slightly askew of center. "Eh?"

"There's no reason to feel, you know, weird. We know how it is between us." She looked right at his swirling blue eyes. "We're totally awesome, um, what do you call that, um—"

"Friends?" he said in a calm voice, falling under the spell cast by Rainbow's intensifying stare.

His answer went straight past Rainbow's ears. "What did you… I… what was I asking you?"

Suddenly, a green jack in the box popped out of Swift's hair.

"Ah!" Rainbow moved backwards, pointing at a small, beaming green turtle. "W–where did he come from?"

"Eh?"

The critter moved his leg across Swift's eyes, breaking his stupor.

"Oh, shoot." Swift snickered. "My bad. Sometimes, I don't even feel him up there. Rainbow? I think I've mentioned him before." Patting the reptile once, "This is Leo, my pet turtle."

Leo bopped the stallion on his head.

"Ow! All right, all right. I can't really call him a pet. He lives in the ocean but loves hanging out with me."

His mouth opened, producing high octave squawking resembling a duck enjoying a swim.

Rainbow stared blankly. "Um, okay. Did he actually try to talk to me?"

Swift nodded. "Gotcha. Surprised me too the first time I heard him. Spend enough time around him and you start picking up what he's telling you, _somehow_. Just now, he was saying he's from off the shores of Ponyesia."

Leo spoke again, this time bolstering his posture.

"What did he say now?"

Eyebrows slanted, "Between the two of us, he's the one with the brains."

Rainbow wagged her foreleg, "Now, now, Leo. Yeah, he's not a complete egghead but if we were in a class together, I'd be copying off him. He's just the right amount of bright."

The stallion's face filled with pink pride. "Ah, shoot. Thanks."

"But you're definitely the brawns, Leo. Swift's got those flabby lumps he claims to be muscles."

Swift snorted at both his laughing companions. "Not even five minutes together and you're already shooting me down, Rainbow."

Leo quacked a third time.

"Guess he likes you already, Rainbow," said the turtle's translator. "And that now he totally gets why I—" Swift's mouth opened wide. "—um, w–what? Hey! No way! I'm not telling her that, Leo!"

"Tell me what, Swift?"

Before he could respond, Fluttershy hovered above their heads. "Rainbow Dash? I know this may sound strange but I thought I heard—" Her bulging, shining eyes zoomed in on Leo. "The _cutest_ turtle I've ever seen!"

Leo leaped into the air, legs spread apart. Fluttershy snatched him mid-flight and then brought him in to a tight hug, sparkling hearts floating all around them. Both of them cooed their utter delight as they spun in slow motion.

"Nice to see you too, Shy," Swift mumbled.

Fluttershy dropped Leo on top of her head. "Oh, I'm sorry, Swift. I just couldn't resist myself when I saw your cute pet."

Rather than striking the mare, Leo squawked his explanation.

"My mistake, Leo." She stroked the turtle, "You're a great friend to him, aren't you? Yes, you are!"

Swift frowned. "What's the deal, Leo? You don't let me get away with that."

Ignoring his whiny complaint, "Let's go down and show you to everypony, Leo."

The stallion stood up. "Right behind you, Shy! I haven't seen everypony in months! You coming, Rainbow?"

"Um, you go ahead. I'll be down in a sec."

Swift and Fluttershy slipped in between the caboose and passenger car, leaving her with a few overhead pigeons as her only companions. Soon, the train tracks sloped downhill as the surrounding terrain rose, obscuring all except for the occasional wooden buildings standing on the rounded peaks. While deprived of a good view, she was too busy in deep contemplation to notice.

_You see? That wasn't too bad. Just like meeting any other friend. _She fell backwards onto the sloped roof. _Well, maybe I felt a little off. Ugh! It's okay, Rainbow. It's okay. Give it time. I'm sure it'll pass, eventually._

She heard metal scrapping against metal, followed by the train bleeding its forward momentum.

_Guess we're getting closer. Maybe I should head back down now._

However, one simple yawn proved too infectious. With wisps of cooler air removing her accumulating sweat, she let her eyelids fall and welcomed a simple and relaxing fade to black.

Then, a poke on her forehead woke her with searing hot pain. She hissed, banging the caboose's roof. "Owwwwwwww."

"Didn't I warn you about putting on sunscreen, Rainbow?"

In front of her was the cheery pony holding said product. "Sunscreen? Uh, oh. Swift? How long was my nap?"

"Ten minutes, give or take."

"_Ten_ minutes. How can I get sunburn so quickly?" She sat up, wincing. "Owie, owie, owie, ow! Darnit. Talk about a fast tan."

"You're lucky Rarity's got an entire suitcase full of the really good stuff." The stallion opened the cap. "Just a few dabs and you'll be all good."

She reached out for it, only for her foreleg to plop onto the roof. "Ow! Yeah, I'm not sure how I can do this."

He oozed out some sunscreen onto the tip of his own hoof. "Hold on. One sec." Swift patted some cold cream onto her hot hoof.

"Ahhh! Ohhh! Eeeee! Geez! That stuff's worse than the sunburn!"

Unlike his friend, Swift became more relaxed the more he rubbed. Doing this was nothing out of the ordinary; he'd helped his fair share of ponies with sunscreen application. Then again, Rainbow Dash had a lot more curves, areas where he'd have to massage ointment at some point. His eyes drifted away from her singed hoof, the sunburns materializing on his cheeks.

_Shoot! What am I thinking? I can't do… I mean, she's… um? _

The bottle escaped his grasp. "Ah! No, no, no!" He juggled it in mid-air, unable to grip it.

Rainbow swiped it from mid-air. "Got it! I can handle it from here."

"Eh," he answered in a higher pitch. "Oh, y–yeah. Gotcha. Heh, heh. I guess you can handle… you're good. You're good."

"Can I ask you something?" said Rainbow, as she plastered more cream around her body.

Wiping off sweat, "Yeah, sure. W–what's up?"

Rainbow worked on her face, "Did you have anything planned for us while we're all here?"

"Not really," he said, ruffling his forelock. "I would've thought Twi would've done that already. She said something about taking a _vacation_ from planning this trip from start to finish?"

"My idea. She needs to loosen up and just do everything on the fly. It's way more fun than—" She adjusted her chords to that of a lecturer "—we must be at the museum entrance at exactly eleven thirty. I've drawn out the path we should take to see the greatest number of exhibits before heading over to the restaurant for our twelve fifteen reservation. I was able to get menus so that we can be quick with our orders. That way, we can catch the one o'clock scenic wagon ride. Please don't be late, everypony."

Swift neighed a laugh. "Shoot. Did Twi really say that? When was that?"

"I'll tell you about it later," she answered, tossing away the empty bottle over the side of the train. "Anyways, any good ideas on what we can do today? Surfing? A volleyball game?"

"I'd have to talk to my friends first." He sighed. "That's if they're all at the train station. That meeting could still be going on for all I know."

"Hey, what was the deal with that, anyways? Must be pretty important if it tied you up."

Swift bit his lip. "Yeah, that's…I'd rather not bore you with that stuff, Rainbow."

"Try me."

"It's about the Aloha Summer Festival. Just a few small things popping up, that's all," he finished with a nervous chuckle.

Right as he finished his sentence, the train juddered from a modest pace to a tepid crawl. Surrounding them were palm trees and shrubbery obscuring everything past half a mile from the tracks. A teal bridge arched above their heads, high enough that the few ponies traversing the walkway avoided a smoky blast from the locomotive's stack pipe.

Rainbow switched to hovering mode, "Guess I should get ready to get everything off the train."

"No worries," he assured her. "Your friends said they'll take care of that so that you can spend more time with me alone." Swift moved his head right, "_Alone._"

Rainbow looked that direction, finding white ears and blue peepers sticking above the slanted roofline. "Rarity!"

The unicorn fell backwards onto the caboose's deck. Before she could slink away, a scowling Rainbow descended to within an inch of her snout.

"Hello, darling," said Rarity, waving hesitantly.

Hooves on hips, "Were you spying on us?"

"_Me?"_ Rarity forced a giggle. "Oh, you're quite mistaken, Rainbow Dash. I was, er, climbing my way up to inform you that we've arrived! You know how late these conductors can be with their announcements."

Right on cue, the intercom buzzed with sound.

_Attention, Stallihorn Zephyr passengers. We're now approaching Brayside Beach, Great Palms Station. If this is your stop, please ensure you retrieve all your items before disembarking. Those continuing to San Prancisco, once we take on new passengers, we will be departing at three o'clock, sharp. _

Rainbow crossed her forelegs. "You were saying, Rarity?"

"I suppose you know now," she answered, springing to all fours. "Excuse me while I—" She took a step toward the door "—powder my… shoes!" She zipped into the caboose, leaving behind a dust silhouette.

The pegasus hovered back to the rooftop, covering her face. "Ugh! Sorry for her being nosy, Swift. I don't know what's up with… hey. Where did you go?"

Up ahead, he zipped all over a wide wooden platform occupied by two dozen ponies along with their many suitcases. Soon, a strawberry painted station came into view, its four walls slanting outwards from the ground in slightly obtuse angles. On both sides stood tall narrow sunshine triangles with clean holes drilled near the tip. Surely, the architect went for a more hip design than the traditional fare and for that, Rainbow gave her nodding approval.

Rather than wait on the train to stop, she flew the last hundred feet to tap on his shoulder. "Hey, what's going on?"

His head swiveled left and right, "Looking for my friends—" Swift exhaled frustration "—and I don't see them anywhere. Of course not. For once, I wish they'd be here on—"

_Kaboom! _One of the station's side doors flew off its hinges and well into the palm tree forest. Grimy smoke billowed from the opening toward the platform, forcing a few coughing passengers to move closer to the tracks.

Swift facehoofed, "Never mind. I think I know who that is."

Out of the dissipating dust walked out a coffee unicorn mare with a frazzled brown mane. With a fervent shake, most of the soot fell on the wayside and her hair straightened to a shape with a few deliberately styled split ends. Despite the stunned stares from nearby ponies, the pony walked away from the disaster zone as though being at ground zero of an explosion was nothing all. When she finally spotted the two hovering pegasi, the unicorn waved at them.

Swift landed in front of the dusted-up pony, as did Rainbow. "Wid-get," he bemoaned, rubbing on a sudden headache. "What in Equestria did you do now? Don't tell me you've already broken station equipment."

"Now, hold on there," she replied with a subtle twang. "Just to set the story straight, some silly bloke in that here station was gonna dump an old ice machine. I told him I could make her purr just like the day it was built." She winked, "I've even told him I could double its capacity, so you see? I was trying to fix something that was already broken."

"And so now there's no ice machine to fix anymore," Swift asked dryly.

She laughed off his comeback. "Well, there was nothing to lose by being a wee ambitious." Then she noticed Rainbow's puzzled stare. "Holy-dooley! Is this the mate you keep babbling about, Swi?"

"Yes… I mean, no! Um, Rainbow! She says that instead of—"

"That's right," the pompous pegasus proclaimed. "I am _that_ Rainbow Dash. Yes, I know. It's so awesome meeting somepony that has saved Equestria many times over, isn't it?"

The unicorn scratched her head. "Really? I really should read the papers more." She pulled out a screwdriver and extended it, "Widget Fixit, re—, oh, blimey! Wrong one!" Widget tossed the tool into an attached satchel and then gave Rainbow a wobbly hoofshake. "Repairpony!"

_Does she have a few screws loose_? Rainbow hid her reservations with a smile. "Something tells me you're not from around here."

"Aye! Born just outside of Sydneigh but living there was wee bit too hot for me, so I—" Widget's jaw suddenly trembled, her swelling pupils gawking past the two present pegasus. "Oy! What is _that_?"

Both turned around to a stopped train with every door already opened. Rainbow's friends were in the midst of removing their haul but what had Widget drooling was Pinkie's party cannon. She pushed past everypony and straight to the pink machine.

"I must be dreaming!" The unicorn touched every nut and bolt. Then, she tapped on the painted metal. "My prototype P-133 festive propulsion device? Is that really you?"

Pinkie gasped as though the carnival had just rolled into town. "Oh my, _gosh!_" She grabbed tightly onto Widget. "P-133? Did you say P-133? But that's what it says inside the barrel! That can only mean—" Stars spun over her pupils "—you're the pony that built this!"

Widget matched her excited tone, "You must be the pony that found it! But where?"

"It fell out of the sky and into a river like, Whoooooooossssshh! Pooooosh!"

Bopping her head, "Silly me! I did use the wrong propellant after all! Does it actually work?"

"I had to fix a few things but—" Pinkie bopped the cannon, instantly exploding confetti and balloons to startled passengers."

"It works! Something I built works!"

Just like that, Pinkie and Widget held hooves and danced in circles, celebrating the reunion between inventor and contraption.

"Heavens to Betsy, am I seeing double here or is it just me?" Applejack stammered, holding her Stetson in place.

"They've both been under the sun _way_ too long," Spike deadpanned.

Twilight let out an elongated groan. "Five minutes off the train and it's already starting to get weird around here. Um, excuse me, but who exactly are you?"

Swift stepped in between the group and the dancing pair. "Twi? She one of my frie— oof!"

Widget nudged him aside. "Widget Fixit, fixer _and_ builder from adapters to zeppelins at Fixit Up!" She handed out business cards with a screwdriver and magnifying glass logo that matched her cutie mark. "Fixit Up! On the outskirts on Sandbar Street near Citrus Way! You must be Swi's other mates. Tell you what. Just because of that, your first service is on the house!"

Pinkie snuck up to Rarity's luggage and from a glittering handbag, pulled out a golden watch. "Oh! You can fix this for Rarity!"

"Hold on just a minute!" The unicorn yanked away the timepiece. "First off, the only thing wrong with this is the minute hand occasionally jamming. More importantly, this was a special birthday present I received from my favorite uncle. The pieces within are rather delicate so I'd rather wait until I find a certified watch… hey!"

The timepiece hovered in the air, draped in sparkling yellow aura emanating from Widget's horn.

"Oh, please be very careful, dear. It's—"

Suddenly, the watch came apart in a slow motion explosion; Rarity's shriek matched the volume of the train's whistle. She fell back in dramatic fashion and Fluttershy saved her from hitting the platform.

"My watch! My precious one-of-a kind antique watch! All those years of cherished family history, gone, forever!" Rarity bawled uncontrollably, tears squirting everywhere.

Unfazed, Widget opened her pouch to allow two slim tools to join in with the rest of the floating debris. A few seconds of spinning around later, every microscopic gear and screw came back together faster than an eye blink. Back in one piece, Widget returned the prized watch to a speechless owner.

Rarity first rattled the timepiece. Then she opened the lid and watched the minute hand move without a judder. Finally, she held it up to her ear and picked up the faintest of crisp clicks and clacks. "My goodness! It sounds better than the day I received it but that's impossible! How did you do it?"

"Small stuff is easy boring stuff for me," Widget said while placing her tools back into her pouch. "Been doing it since I touched my first screwdriver. Big projects, now that's where the fun really is."

Pinkie pulled the unicorn in, smiling from ear to ear. "Then can I ask if you can build something big and special for me, _friend?_"

"Whatcha got in mind, mate?"

She moved her peepers between Widget and the cannon. In seconds, the duo developed a new form of communication through quirky face gestures and nods that nopony could crack. They had to wait fifteen seconds for the big announcement.

In unison, "Party Cannon 2.0!"

Twilight stared blankly as the duo continued a more normal verbal conversation. "Why does the sound of that scares me, a lot?"

"I really wanna say _no worries _to that," answered a pale faced Swift. "I really do."

"Quit your worrying, you two," said Rainbow as she lifted a gym bag over her shoulder. "C'mon! Let's dump our stuff at the motel so we can start our vacation."

Luggage in tow, they walked straight to the station's wide glass door. They slid open and allowed them inside the building, where the walls arched high above their heads. Baby blue paint covered the ceiling along with puffy white clouds and the top of palm trees stretching toward the center. Down on the floor, a blue mane mare added red stripes to a half-completed lighthouse towering above crashing waves. Her strokes were straight and neat despite some nearby stallions dragging a few curved sculptures across the tiled floor to their final resting place. Across from the painter, a small queue waited for the next open ticket counter. Nine listed destinations were on an overhead sign along with times and prices; Rarity snapped a photo of it.

"Everything in here's modern but not overly flamboyant," Rarity quipped. "Is this a new facility?"

Swift nodded. "The old station was kinda like Ponyville's. Town didn't need a large one since there was no direct route over the Stallihorns. Ponies would visit Las Pegasus, San Prancisco or even Seaddle over us. Now that we have the Stallihorn Zephyr line, who knows how many new tourists we'll get, especially with the Aloha Summer Festival coming up?"

"I would say quite a lot," said Twilight. "Half the train got off here."

"And it's only Wednesday too," he added as they passed through a second set of glass doors. "We may have more ponies than the committee planned for." He stopped short of a cobblestone runabout with a fountain in the middle. "But I'm sure Brayside can handle it. We've got everything under control."

"Swift! Dude!" a loud voice called to him. "We're in trouble!"

"Eh?"

He looked past the wagons traversing the roundabout to an earth pony galloping at full speed. The stallion's coronets sent loose cobblestone flying behind him but lost no traction at all. Despite the approaching yellow locomotive, Swift stayed in position and watched the much taller and muscular stallion slam the brakes and finally stop short of a collision.

"Cool your jets, Blitz," Swift said calmly. "What's up?"

"Bad stuff's going down at town hall!" With his thick forelegs, he picked Swift up to his eye level and shook him like a rag doll. "Blossom's not very happy! I'm telling you! She's gonna blow her top any second, bro!"

Between gasps for air, "I–I gotcha! L–let g–g–o!"

He let Swift plop onto the ground. "Sorry, dude. Hey! Did you find your fr—?" That's when his eyes bulged at six unfamiliar mares. "— ahhhh, sweet!" The stallion brushed back his slick brown hair. "Ladies, today is your lucky day! I'll make your heart fly and I'll show you a good time! Why not take a ride with the Blitz!" His eyebrows moved suggestively. "Pineapple Blitz."

A few circling birds cawed.

"Dude, that was just weak," Spike retorted.

Blitz stroked his brown goatee. "Yeah, you're totally right, dragon dude. Wimpy poetry ain't part of my game_._ Should've gone with—"

"Hold on one apple picking minute!" Applejack marched right up to his chest and then glanced at his mark, a bolt over a pineapple. "You're part of the Pineapple family, aren't ya?"

He flashed a cheeky grin. "Sure am, pretty thing. Now, if you want to take a _personal_ tour of Juicy Fruit Farms—"

"Can it, yellow belly!" Standing on her tippy hooves, "Don't lie to me! It was _you_ that convinced the organizers to give me such a lousy selling spot for the Aloha Summer Festival!"

Twilight stomped her hoof. "Applejack! Calm down, please!"

Blitz ignored the unicorn's outburst. "Chill, girl. I don't know—" Applejack's name finally registered in his mind, widening his smug smile. "Oh, I see. So you must be part of the Apple Clan but you know what? No prob cause I don't let things like rivalries get in the way of sweet honies like you."

Applejack readied a buck to his chest, but a wrench to his head froze her in place. "What the?"

"Widget," the stout stallion whined, rubbing the impact area. "Why you'd do that for? I was, like, on a rad roll."

The unicorn simply smiled as she secured her tool back in her pouch. "Oh, before I left Town Hall, Blossom asked me to _put you in line _just in case she wasn't around. She's say you'd understand."

He crushed a cobblestone under his hoof. "Why she gotta rag on me all the time," he mumbled. "It's not fair." Blitz then faced Applejack. "All right. If you gotta know, Surfing Blossom's my friend and the head of the whole party deal but did _I _get a primo spot? Nooooo. She put me—"

"Swift!" Applejack set her glare at him to destroy. "You couldn't tell me _that_ on the train?"

He raised a limp hoof, "Um, well. I thought that would, um, ruin your mood? Besides, Blitz is right. His stall isn't that great either."

Right on time, Twilight tossed him a scroll, which he immediately unfurled.

"See?" He pointed at a square across from one with drawn apples. "Blossom and the committee are trying to be fair to everypony by not letting friendships get in the way of their decisions."

"And she's playing _unfavorites_ with me," Blitz protested.

Swift rolled his eyes. "That's pretty much what I just said. Anyways, nothing personal, AJ."

Applejack tipped down her hat. "Ah, consarn it, Fly. I guess owe ya an apology. A thousand pardons."

"Hey. Don't I get one," asked Blitz.

"I'm sorry you sell pineapples," she mumbled. Applejack then addressed Swift, "Still, I can't just let this go. I gotta talk to Blossom and at least try to get something going for me."

"That's fine and all but we'll still need to stop by the motel first," Twilight order. "Then you… hold on."

This time, Twilight and Spike had their own nonverbal conversation. It took all but five seconds to convey the message.

"So, what's exactly is going on at town hall," Twilight asked Blitz. "Is it anything serious?"

Blitz gave a hearty nod. "It's been nothing but bad news. If Blossom can't fix it soon, the party's gonna be toast!"

Gasps erupted, not just by the immediate group but also from anypony within earshot. Swift hovered above the stunned crowd and waved his hooves.

"No worries, everypony," he shouted. "The festival's still on! Just gotta work out some kinks, um, whatever they are!"

Spike swiveled a spotlight right onto a confidant Twilight. "And thank Celestia that you have the greatest organizer in all of Equestria right here to help!"

Twilight's friends uttered confusion.

"But I thought we were finally going to have a nice and relaxing vacation", said Fluttershy.

"Not when you have friends in trouble or in this case"— She gestured at Rainbow and Swift—"a friend of a friend, um, of a friend. I'm sure this is something we can take care of pretty quickly. Besides, what better way to get better acquainted with new friends through a little adversity?"

Swift scratched his head. "Are you sure about this, Twi? You _really_ don't have to do this. We can—"

"How about it, gang? How about we all go visit Town Hall today?"

Save for the grey pegasus, the amassed murmured their approval.

"Great! Now it's just a matter of getting all our stuff to the motel."

"Leave that to me," Blitz chirped.

He trotted around the road until reaching a two-bench wagon with a fresh coat of yellow paint. Blitz hitched himself to it before pulling up to the front entrance.

"I knew I was gonna need this today," he said, releasing the straps. "Mares first, of course!"

Six mares and small dragon began tossing suitcases and bags onto the cart. While Blitz and Widget aided them, Swift let his body limp in mid-air.

Rainbow eventually joined by his side. "Something wrong?"

The pegasus rubbed the strands running down his neck, "My bad, Rainbow. I wanted all you guys to have a fun vacation without dragging you into any of our messes. Guess that was asking too much."

"Don't worry about it." She jabbed him on the ribs, "My friends and I jump into stuff way worse than this. I mean, we don't have to save Equestria from monsters or change the season. It's just some problems with a party. How hard can that be?"


	3. A Blossoming Problem

**Chapter 3 – A Blossoming Problem**

"Blitz, yeah! We're rolling!"

Hitched to the wagon, Blitz powered his thick hooves forwards. However, one of the wheels rolled right into a deep dip and remained there.

"Whoa! Hang on, everypony! I'm gunning it!"

He grunted heavily, as he took steps that crunched the cobblestone into pebbles. Soon enough, he was pulling hundreds of pounds with ease off the roundabout and onto a straight road moderately sloping downhill.

Standing at the front of the wagon, Twilight surveyed the landscape like a captain at sea. A quarter mile down the street, it crossed another road and then continued with a gentler decline through buildings of increasing height until reaching its endpoint right at the sand. "Hey, Blitz? Do you know where this _Super Hay Motel_ is?"

"Four blocks down and one to the right," he answered confidently.

Swift hovered next to Blitz, "You're thinking about the Sunny Bay Motel. Super Hay's six down and two left."

"Are you sure about that, bro? You should fly ahead and check."

"Great idea," said Rainbow, moving besides Swift. "So, how about we race there?"

He raised an objecting foreleg, "Rainbow, but you just got—" He had a chuckle. "You're not letting me off the hook, are you?"

She didn't say a word, only the slightest amount of smugness on her face.

Swift glanced at his turtle – he was blabbing away with Fluttershy. "Well, if you _really _want to, threetwoone go!"

In a flash, two pegasi left the area with such velocity that everypony's hair whipped backwards.

"Dude's hauling it," Blitz bragged. "I knew Swift had speed, but damn!"

"But he ain't faster than Rainbow Dash, replied Applejack, adjusting her hat back in place. " Look! She's gonna pass him right now!"

A gray and cyan dot turned left, disappearing behind a pastel painted two-story building.

"Oh. Guess we won't see the finish of that one."

Blitz grinned, "That don't matter. I saw all I needed to see. I know I'm totally right!"

"Right about what?" said Twilight.

He turned his head back and winked. "My friend totally digs yours!"

Rarity shoved in between Twilight and Applejack. "Do you really think so? What do you know? Oh! Did he share his deepest true feelings with you?"

Blitz opened his mouth wide. "Nah. Just a vibe I'm getting. Dude doesn't even race with me but does with her? That's telling me something."

The unicorn cursed under her breath. "Did he at least tell you exactly what happened during his trip to Ponyville a few months ago?"

"That's a negatory, but I can tell when a stallion and a mare fall into that _special_ groove. When you spend enough time at the beach, you pick up on it, you know?"

"I think you're reading _way_ too much into this, you two," said Applejack. "It's a little friendly competition, nothing more. I know Swift has told us before he wasn't into racing but with friendship, you try new things and sometimes, you'll change your mind."

Rarity sat back down, forelegs crossed. "I suppose you have a point, Applejack." She then moved to the back of the cart where Pinkie and Widget was drawing on a blue sheet sprawled on the floor. "But what about you, Miss Widget? Surely Swift must have told you something about Rainbow?"

The brown unicorn grinned. "Of course he did. She's the fastest flier in all of Equestria."

Her eyelids shut halfway, "Forget I asked, darling. What are you two doing, anyways?"

"We're drawing up plans for the upgraded Party Canon," replied Pinkie. She tapped on the current model strapped in place by rope. "This one's been great to me but it doesn't have the same _Surprise!_ as it used to. It barely even startled Fluttershy during her last surprise birthday party."

"It was startling enough," added the aforementioned pony.

Disregarding Fluttershy's remark, "I also want a wee bit more versatility with what I can use as ammo. Animal balloons, longer streamers, pies—"

"Ice cream?" said Spike, licking his chops. "Or hot fudge? I've love a blast of fudge!"

Widget twirled a screwdriver in mid-air, "Liquid inside a propulsion device? Blimey! That's a toughie. Before I can even figure out how to do that, I gotta take the old one apart and see what I did wrong the first time."

"That's easy," Blitz bellowed. "It's something you built, it was your first test and it involved a boom. Bad combo."

A levitating screwdriver bopped him between the eyes.

"Hey! Blossom wouldn't hit me for that!"

Widget winked, "That one was from me, you bugger."

Most on the cart had a laugh at the stallion's expense.

"Well, I approve of that," Applejack remarked, tipping her hat. "Somepony's gotta knock some manners onto yellow belly."

Blitz raspberried. "Lame! That's the best taunt you can do? Of course my belly's yellow!"

"Um, guys?" Twilight craned her neck forward. "Where did Swift and Rainbow go? I thought they'd back by now."

"Chill, Twi . I bet they've found the place and are just waiting for us there. Just enjoy the ride on the Pineapple Express."

Moments later, they crossed an intersection and entered into a commercial area. Whereas Ponyville constructed their structures predominantly with wood and jay, these were a mix of plaster and bricks. All of them had varying shades of bold bright colors covering both inside and outside walls: lime green, plum red, burning red, sunshine yellow, berry blue and scorching orange. Most of the shopkeepers stood outside their doors, welcoming or otherwise striking casual conversations with ponies walking by.

Rarity cooed when she spotted a two-story purple building with three racks of frilly clothes by the entrance. Fluttershy pranced at a pet shop with a toucan waving behind the windowpane. Twilight all but hopped off the cart as they went by a circular glass building within a field full of newly planted palm trees.

"A library," she squealed. "And it looks so new too!"

"That's because much of what you see is _brand _spanking new," said the cart-puller. "I'm telling ya. Brayside's going places!"

On their right, a park spanning several city blocks came into view, replete with enough swings and slides for the frolicking fillies and colts while their parents took a breather on benches facing a small lake. Beyond the field were wooden houses with front porches, much of it hidden by wild shrubbery. Hazy hills dotted the background, reminding the newcomers that much of Brayside Beach was rural, save for this area where cart and hoof traffic required a guard at the upcoming intersection.

With a turn to the left, the cart and its passengers noticed Swift and Rainbow holding up a banner across the road advertising the Aloha Summer Festival. From a second story window, ponies on opposite ends pulled dangling rope into their respective buildings.

"Doing some extra chores, bro," Blitz asked, stopping the cart.

Swift placed hooves on hips. "Nah. You see, Rainbow—"

"—that's right," Rainbow said, muffling Swift's muzzle. "Just doing something nice for the community."

Twilight scrutinized her friend's wide smile. "You _volunteering_? Okay. What really happened here?"

Swift wriggled free of Rainbow. "She flew right into the banner and crashed, natch."

Rainbow swung for his ribs but missed. "Pffft. Whatever."

"So this is the right way, dude," Blitz asked.

"Up ahead on the right. Can't miss it!"

Sure enough, past the next road was a tall sign of an arrow pointing at a u-shaped one-story building painted flamingo pink. Blitz turned onto a side dirt road and stopped in front of a double glass door with a _Front Office_ sign on the side.

"The Pineapple Express has arrived! Next stop, Town Hall!"

Twilight thanked Blitz before disembarking. "Okay, everypony! Check in and just leave your stuff in your rooms! Be back here in ten minutes!"

One by one, the visitors went inside the building, leaving the three local by themselves. Swift headed their way but Blitz gestured Swift to sit by his side.

"Dude," he whispered into his ear. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Eh? Tell you what?"

Blitz pointed at the cyan mare, "She is totally _smoking, _and I'm not talking run-of-the mill smoking. I'm talking _Blossom_ hot!" He elbowed him lightly, "Bro. How'd you score a pony like her?"

"How many times have I told you?" said Swift in between clenched teeth. "Rainbow Dash is my f-r-i-e-n-d, friend!"

"Ahhh." He stroked his goatee. "If she's your f-r-i-e-n-d, then you don't mind if I put on the old Blitz charm on her?"

Swift tugged him by the harness, "Not wicked, Blitz. Knock it off."

"Chill out, dude." He winked, "I got ya. You're _finally_ gonna make your move on her?"

"N-no. It's not—" The pegasus let go of the leather strand and snorted. "I don't do mushy stuff, all right? And neither does Rainbow. That's how we roll, like me and Blossom or Widget here."

The repairpony, looking within the party cannon, pulled out her head for a moment. "Whatcha rambling about, Swi?"

Swift sighed. "Never mind, Widge. Get my drift, Blitz?"

No time for an answer – all his passengers had exited the office. Blitz unhooked himself from the cart and offered to be their personal bellpony. While Widget stood guard on the cart, Swift tried lifting an oversized duffel bag but only managed three inches of ground clearance. On schedule, Rainbow cracked up before she lent him help.

"You have weights in here or something, Rainbow?" Swift huffed.

"It's only a few," she chided him.

Together, they carried the luggage through one of the three open doors near the end. Inside, Rainbow frowned at the lack of amenities: two twin beds, a faded dresser drawer with a cracked oval mirror, one firefly-operated lamp and a small cereal bowl that was doing a mediocre impersonation of a sink. The towel rack had no cloth wider than a napkin while the complementary toiletries had less liquid than an eyedropper. Even the nicest part of the room — the rosy wallpaper — had ripples around its edges. Haste makes waste certainly applied to the lazy pony that thought this was satisfactory work.

"This is perfect," Fluttershy chirped as she exited what Rainbow guessed was the bathroom. "It's so cozy and pink? Don't you think so, Rainbow?"

Nestled within Fluttershy's flowing hair, Leo made a gagging motion.

"You said it, Leo," said Rainbow, dropping the bag beside one of the beds. "More like cramped and putrid. Hey, Swift? Mind if I crash…. um—"

"Eh? What did you say?"

_Crash at your place. Crash at your place? _Her cheeks matched the wallpaper's tint. "I, um, never mind! Sleeping here is just fine with me!" Rainbow let herself fall onto what her back registered as concrete. "Ow! Yeah, that's just how I like it." Ears folded, "_Extra_ firm."

A second later, Rarity's whining about the décor came through the paper mache thick walls, followed by Applejack's marching out of the room.

"And she's the one that picked the place," the cowpony murmured as she passed by the doorway.

"I heard that," Rarity rebuked. "And for the record, it's not my fault _somepony_ heard me wrong before making the reservations."

Twilight's incoherent protests penetrated two walls, something about pronunciation and Spike. The dragon quickly added to the rapid-fire whining.

Rainbow shrugged. "Well, it could be worse. At least I don't have to sleep with Pinkie Pie."

On cue, Pinkie popped out of the duffel bag. "And what's wrong with that?"

All three pegasi around Pinkie yelped.

"You just answered your own question," said Rainbow, slinking away from the party mare.

Eventually, everyone returned to a more spacious and lighter cart, allowing Blitz to take off at a more brisk speed.

Once more, he and his passengers went under the street banner before turning left onto the same downhill road that they used to leave the train station. After a few blocks, the street finally leveled off and the buildings grew in size and in complexity; a five-foot spire building, a taller complex with an arched wall on one side and another with glass covering every inch of the structure's many sweeping curves. Then came the tallest one of them all, an incomplete fifteen story skinny skeleton with _Brayside One Hotel_ signs plastered all over the construction barriers separating them and the workers drilling holes, pouring concrete or threading the narrow girders.

"This certainly is different than Ponyville," said Applejack as the wagon made a right turn.

"But it still has a touch of that small town charm," added Rarity. "I could do without this stifling heat, though."

After crossing three intersections, Blitz stopped in front of a plaza with a tiled walkway cutting through a grass fields, leading to a three-story building with a baby blue rotunda. The sun-palm tree combination sign at the entrance informed everypony that they had arrived at their destination.

Swift and Blitz led the pony parade down the passageway and past the double wooden doors into Town Hall. Within the airy chamber, sunlight came through the rotunda's slits, basking the indoor Princess Celestia ornate fountain with a cool orange glow. Past the waterworks was a grand staircase going up half a floor before splitting into two and hugged the rounded chamber walls as it ascended to higher levels. On both ends of the lobby, wide arched doorways led into opposite ends of the building. Soon, five ponies emerged from the hallway on the left.

"Squeezy!" Swift stopped in front of a cream-colored mare with a bowl-cut purple mane. "Hold up. Is the meeting over already?"

She placed on a small hat that read _Malts 'R Us._ "Pretty much. We were running out of ideas, so Blossom told us we could go."

"What a relief," added a red stallion with wispy blond hair. "It's always a challenge dealing with her. She's a firecracker ready to burst and you're not getting me to put out _that_ fire."

Blitz slapped his sides, his guffaws echoing around the chamber. "Hey! Good one, Ember!" A floating screwdriver bopped in on the nose. "Ow!"

Swift allowed the small group by, "No worries! I can handle her, I think."

He led everypony into the wide hallway lit by one of many tall windows. Past the glass was a botanical garden with small bridges over streams, four gazebos and an old groundskeeper trimming the rose bushes. In contrast, the other side of the wall had pictures of nature hung on a marble and further down the hallway, a set of wide doors.

Swift placed a foreleg on one of the handles but stopped himself from a tug. "Um, you know what? Maybe I should go in there by myself and see if—"

Blitz nudged him out of the way, so he could hold open the door. "Chill out, dude! Ladies? C'mon in."

After a reluctant sigh, Swift entered a lit auditorium with several rows of blue benches configured in an arching pattern around a raised platform at the front. A blank projector screen hung from the wall, its width the same as the long wooden table with seven leather chairs. The middle one had its back toward the rear but it squeaked back and forth ever so slightly.

Swift waited until the last guest entered the large room. Then, he threaded carefully down the sloping aisle, every hoofstep resonating. "'Sup, Blossom. I just—"

A copper red hoof appeared beside the seatback. "One second," said a feminine yet firm voice.

Swift stopped halfway down the aisle as did all behind him.

"It sounds like you're not alone. Is the group from Ponyville with you right now?"

"They sure are," Blitz proclaimed. "Every one of them."

The unseen pony leaned the squeaking chair back. "I see. I wasn't expecting to see them this soon. I'll just have to improvise, then."

Suddenly, the room's lights changed to bright greens and yellows while overhead speakers pumped out a peppy island tune. All mouths hung open in anticipation except for a baffled Swift. He cast an aside glance.

"Are we really doing a song for this?"

Pinkie stared into the same space, "I didn't know you could see them too, Fly-Fly!"

"Eh?"

A spotlight fell onto the chair. Then, it swiveled right around and its occupant, a redhead pegasus with curled eyelashes, leaped onto the table. She released her wings and glided down the aisle as leis rained down from the ceiling. When she landed, she placed the flower arrangements onto everypony one-by-one, her double ponytails swaying to the beat.

_I've been waiting for you_

_Sun will break right through _

_And melt all your stress away_

_Don't wait for an invitation_

_Make this your best vacation yet_

_Brayside Beach will make your day_

_Big fun times are on the way_

_Surf the waves or ride a bike_

_You can even fly a kite_

_Whatever you choose to do_

_This message will send you through_

_Aloha!_

As her Ponyville audience clapped, Blossom tackled hugged Swift.

"Oof!" He stumbled back a step. "B–Blossi. I guess you're in good mood, huh?"

"I can't believe you've brought them all here," she squealed. "I was so disappointed I couldn't greet them at the station. I was gonna have a band and balloons and—"

Wrestling away from her embrace, "I know, I know. You wanted a big Brayside greet—"

Blitz yanked Swift away like a rag doll. "Hey! I did most of the work, you know! Give me some cred, Blossom!"

She tapped him on the cheek, "Tell you what, you big lug. I promise to be nicer with you…for the rest of today."

"That doesn't really mean anything," he bemoaned.

Brushing off his whining, she turned to her visitors with a glittering smile. "I know I've already said it but _Aloha_! I'm Surfing Blossom and I'm so excited to have the bearers of the elements of harmony in our wonderful town. I hope ponies as famous as all of you didn't have any trouble getting here without being swarmed for autographs."

Twilight bit her lip, squashing her sarcastic zinger. "We, um, managed but we heard you may have some issues with the upcoming celebration."

"Problems?" She giggled. "What problems?"

"The seagulls," Blitz scratched his head, "um, the fireworks, those peg—"

With a hind leg, Blossom socked him on the side. "Oh, yes. _Those _problems."

"How is this nicer?" the large yellow stallion wheezed, grabbing his gut.

"We'd be happy to help anyway we can." Twilight held her head high, "In fact, you could say I'm one of the best organizers in all of Equestria."

Spike drew attention with an _Ahem!_

"With the help of my number one assistant, of course."

Blossom waved her off, "Oh, I appreciate that but I don't want to burden all of you with our problems."

"Oh, we don't mind. Just tell us what you need and we'll do what we can."

"It's all right, really. Go out and enjoy what our town has to offer. Have fun, relax. Let Brayside ponies handle this."

Twilight suddenly had an eye twitch. This was stubborn Applejack refusing for help all over again. She wouldn't take no, especially when it meant ending her forced planning vacation early. "But I insist. I have the ideal experience to deal with situations like these."

"I can handle this," Blossom answered, brow lowering.

"Are you sure about that?" the unicorn said, pacing back and forth. "Do you really want to take that kind of risk when you have a wealth of knowledge standing right in front of you? Isn't that what a capable leader would do?"

Her wings went up in full display. "I have it under control, thank you very much."

"But still, we could be an invaluable resource to you. For example, our town mayor once—"

As the unicorn lectured about Winter Wrap Up, Blossom's tail slithered toward a pink surfboard with three white flowers painted on the surface, a much larger replica of her cutie mark. Before she could grab it from atop the bench, Swift barged in between the two.

"My bad, girls. Um, Blossom? Can I have a word with you, _alone_?"

Despite her protest, the stallion nudged Blossom onto the raised platform and through a door that read _Storage Room_. Within the dark space, Swift stopped her from waltzing into a stack of boxes. He reached over to flick on the lights, revealing that somepony had already accidently toppled boxed holiday decorations all over the floor; a purple magician hat with stars hinted at the culprit.

"Blossom," he whispered as he turned the deadbolt. "Cool your jets, all right? She's just trying—"

"I don't care if that _Twilight Sparkle_ is the Element of Magic," she snapped. "Not even a minute with that… know-it-all and she's driving me crazy! I have enough problems having a committee telling me what to do! I don't need—"

Swift raised a firm foreleg. "Blossom?"

She stopped but immediately displayed annoyed pouted lips. "Yes?"

"Look, I know this party is a wicked big deal for you but if there's some heavy stuff on your plate, let Twi and her friends take care of a few things. Just think of the great rep the town's gonna really earn if we make the festival the best one ever. That's what you want, right? To put Brayside on the map? Just give them a chance. They're good ponies. You've got my word on that."

After some fidgeting, she audibly exhaled. "Well, when you put it that way, I guess I could give them something to do." After a brief pause, she quickly added, "but only because it means a lot to you that we all get along."

"Tha—"

"Especially with Rainbow Dash," she added with a cat smile.

Suddenly, he found the markings on the storage boxes interesting. "Whatever."

"Awwwww." She moved into his sights and batted her eyelashes. "Why so mad at me, Swift?"

"You promised you wouldn't tease me about this_, _Blossom."

A halo shone above her head, "But I wasn't. I was simply making a comment."

"_Sure_," he answered, unlocking the door. "That's what it was."

Both re-entered the meeting hall where everyone gathered around Twilight the storyteller.

"…in Equestria can be handled by a checklist," the unicorn finished, waving her leg around. "Oh, you're back, Blossom. I was just telling your friends some of my methods to run a smooth and efficient operation."

A vein popped on the surfer mare's forehead. "Yes, well, that's—" Blossom forced a smile "—that's wonderful! You know, now that I think about it, I'm sure there's a few things all of you can do. Before we get into that, how about we take a field trip first, hmmm?"

Blitz rubbed his back. "Ohhhhhhhhh. I have to pull that cart again? I don't think—"

"And I'll cook a nice warm home cooked dinner for everypony at my place."

Blitz's back muscles suddenly healed. "Dinner? Swwweeeeet! Let's ride!"

A few minutes later, a full wagon left Town Hall straight ahead as the first splashes of orange shone on the town's palm trees and buildings. Soon, the stallion merged onto another cobblestone road running parallel to the glistening ocean that stretched across the horizon. Half a mile behind them was a long pier that had a Ferris wheel and buildings hosting what Spike presumed to be a whole evening's worth of entertainment.

"Can we go there before we leave, please," Spike begged Twilight.

"Of course we will," Twilight reassured him. "Say, Blossom? Are we really heading to the festival's location? Shouldn't it be closer to that pier?"

Blossom's tail latched onto the surfboard – how dare this unicorn question her judgment without knowing all the facts! Swift whispered in her ear, telling her to calm down. After biting her tongue, she put on a cheery face. "That would be ideal but unfortunately, there's just not enough real estate over there to host a celebration of this size."

Twilight stood up for a closer inspection. Sure enough, the sand splitting town and water immediately surrounding the pier had not much room for anything other than a walking trail, a restroom facility and a few basketball courts. Closer to them, the shoreline gained width but more buildings took that space, none taller than five stories but continuing the town's theme of using every shade in the color wheel. A wide dirt walkway cut between those structures and the beach proper. There, merchants set up makeshift shops with nothing more than a table to sell custom-made trinkets to tourists. Other ponies used the walkway to display their wide arsenal of talents, whether that involved juggling bales of hay, playing music with a horn or riding a unicycle; one did all three at once.

"Excuse me, Blossom?" Applejack wrung her hat. "I was hoping I could get a word with you about something relating to this party here."

She nodded, "Applejack? I believe you're the honest one that sells apples, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Then I'm guessing this is about your stall location?"

"Yes, ma'am. I don't wanna sound ungrateful but I was hoping you'd reconsider that."

Blitz dug his hooves onto the road, all but flinging his riders off the cart. "Whoa, whoa! If she gets to cut a deal with you, I should too!"

"This ain't got nothing to do with you, Pineapple," the cowpony sneered.

The stallion raspberried. "Up yours, Apple! Somepony's gotta represent Juicy Fruit Fields here and that pony is me!"

"If you're the face of that sorry excuse for a farm, then they ain't got a prayer."

"Loserhat!"

"Yellow belly!"

Blossom banged her surfboard on the carriage's railing. "Order! Order! I won't have that kind of tone in this cart!" She faced Applejack, hooves crossed. "I'm sorry, Applejack, but I must be honest with you. Sweet Apple Acres apples just aren't sweet enough for this town. Knowing the committee, I doubt they'll change their minds based on that fact alone."

Blitz began laughing, only to have Blossom clamp down his jaw. "And as for you, pineapples have been in a slide in popularity this year, thanks to you slacking off selling and marketing them around town. All the other fruit families simply kicked your little yellow behind this time around, so stop whining and get moving!"

With her orange eyes burning right into his soul, the trembling stallion turned around and began pulling the wagon. "Yes, Blossom."

Instantly, her scowl flipped direction. "However, I do have some good news for both of you. The committee received word this afternoon from the Bananers that their crop isn't ripening fast enough. We decided that they would no longer hold the vendor location by the main entrance."

Both interested parties gasped in anticipation.

"Now, on Friday, the committee will allow vendors to make their case for that lot before voting. Again, being honest here, I doubt either of you will win by yourselves."

"I know," Twilight responded, standing firmly. "What about if Blitz and Applejack join forces and tell them they'll share the same spot?"

In anticipation, Swift grabbed onto Blossom's surfboard.

Blossom's eyelid twitched. _I was going to say that! _"Y–you… yes. Yes. You're right. There's nothing that says sharing a spot isn't allowed. Whether you can beat groups like the Mangoes and the Strawberries will be hard but I'm sure you two can do it!"

Applejack wretched as though she bit into a molded apple. "No offense, Blossom, but I can't see myself pairing up with a Pineapple."

"Ditto," Blitz answered. "Apples just aren't my type."

"But why not?" Pinkie stole Applejack's hat and placed it atop the stallion's head. "You can't have Pine_apple_ without apples!"

Twilight facehoofed. "They're two complete different fruits, Pinkie."

"Work together or I'll personally vote against both of you," Blossom growled. "Do I make myself clear?"

Begrudgingly, two rivals grunted their mutual agreement.

Satisfied, Blossom slouched onto the wagon's bench. "You see, everypony?" She sighed contently. "That's how you handle negotiations."

Based on most blank faces around her, Blossom's methods were using a sledgehammer to fix a minor dent. Rainbow found herself nodding. She slid right beside her and took a similarly comfortable position.

"Heh. Gotta say you've got a lot of spunk, Blossom." She smirked, "I like you already."

The redhead turned her head. "And I would say the same thing. Swift has told me so much about you, Rainbow. Did he ever mention little old me?"

"You mean the so-called greatest surfer ever to grace the waves?" Rainbow answered. "That's a pretty bold claim to make."

She raised an eyebrow. "You want me to back that up? You be careful, girl, because it doesn't matter if you're my worst rival or best friend. You try going up against me in the water," she leaned in and flashed a brash grin, "you're gonna get crushed."

Rainbow licked her chops at such a tasty morsel of confidence oozing from the redhead. "Oh, really? I'm not afraid one bit. First chance we get, we're totally on."

They reached out for a hoof bump, only for multiple shadows to distract them. Several brown and white seagulls had gathered above the wagon and followed it as it pulled off into a gentle downhill dirt road that meandered toward an open grassy field.

Fluttershy pranced atop the wagon, believing the birds were greeting them to the beach. However, her pleasant smile vanished once Leo told her otherwise. "What do you mean they're not friendly?"

The seagulls dove right at the traveling ponies with a deafening maniacal caw. Hooves flailed wildly as the birds swopped by and popped them with their feet.

Rarity waved around her paper fan, but their beaks quickly tore it into shreds. "Tell them to stop, Fluttershy," she begged as she followed Spike under the wagon's bench.

She immediately cowered besides the pair. "I can't! I don't understand them!"

Blossom wrapped her tail around her surfboard and began whipping it around the air. "You pests! Shoo!"

_Bang!_ The party cannon exploded confetti but all it did was attract half the colony to Pinkie and Widget. In defense, Applejack flung around her Stetson but three birds grabbed onto it and engaged in a tug of war. Twilight fired off magic bursts from her horn, hoping to aid the cowpony but every shot missed its target.

Meanwhile, Rainbow and Swift had already taken flight, the former swinging her hooves in every direction. Much to her agitation, she kicked empty air, opening her to an attack from the sides.

"Ow! Quit poking me!" She finally hit one. "Swift? What's the deal?"

"_Seagulls,"_ he growled, face muscles twisting. "I've had just about enough of seagulls!"

He took the offensive, repeatedly cutting off their paths and delivering a sideswipe of gray feathers. In less than fifteen seconds, all the birds chased after him, squawking angrily that he eluded them at every turn. Eventually, they flew in a tight v pattern.

He checked over his shoulder. "Eat this!"

Holding his right wing straight, Swift spun clockwise with such force, he shot out an arc of wind twice his width. The birds scarcely had a chance to react before the sudden gust delivered a body blow that sent the pack hurtling over fifty feet. With lost plumage and woozy heads, they staggered away from the shore.

Swift heaved and panted, unable to deliver a parting line.

"Beat it, birdbrains," Rainbow shouted as she shook a foreleg. Then, she patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, that was really awesome, Swift! I didn't know you've been working on that move!"

"Wanted… to surprise you." He swiped sweat off his face, "But that's all I can do. Not a big improvement, huh?"

"Good enough against those varmits," replied Applejack, wiping the feathers off her hat. "What in Equestria was that about?"

Blossom sighed as she tossed her surfboard aside. "I'm sorry, everpony. I should've warned all of you about this ahead of time. Those seagulls are one problem we're having."

Blitz resumed pulling the wagon further down the dirt path. "They showed up earlier this year around the farm. I had to work overtime to keep them off our crops. _Overtime!_"

"And they keep pestering my weather team," added Swift, as he took a seat and savored his wing. "Don't get me started on how many _cleanup_ calls we've gotten the past month."

"I built a noise machine to drive off them buggers from here," said Widget. She leaned out from the wagon, "That should've worked."

Once Blitz stopped in front of a vast grassy field, the wrench mare hopped off and ran toward a wooden box with a horn attachment split in two. Smoke billowed out of the phonograph riddled by rounded dents across its surface. When she touched it, the apparatus exploded, showering the unicorn with smoke and springs.

"So much for that idea," Blossom grumbled as she gathered everypony else around the unicorn. "Just look around, everypony. This is where we're hosting our festival. According to our schedule, construction should've started at noon."

Blossom then directed everypony's attention to lumber piles stacked around the field's perimeter. Toolboxes and hard hats littered the ground alongside some white and grey feathers.

"It's obvious why there's not even a single structure built yet," Blossom continued. "We can try forcing them out every time they show up but I'd rather have a more permanent solution. We can't afford that many delays and we certainly can't have them attack our partygoers."

"We've got the solution to that problem right here," said Twilight, pulling Fluttershy by her side. "She can talk to those seagulls and figure out what's going on."

Fluttershy took a step back. "Not exactly. You see, there's at least thirteen different dialects for seagulls and unfortunately, they speak one I don't actually know. If I spend some time around them, I might pick up their language but I don't think that would—"

"Great!" Twilight winked. "See, Blossom? She'll take care of it! Anything else?"

Blossom unfurled a parchment along with a quill. Before she could make the first marking, Spike tugged on the paper.

"I can take care of that for you, "he remarked, demonstrating his fingers. " I can write at least thirty words a—"

She pinched his cheeks, "Ooooooh! I didn't even notice you until now! You're so _adorable_!"

Spike giggled as his cheeks burned.

"Of course you can help me, cutie pie." Tossing him the parchment, "Just keep going down the list."

"Yes, ma'am!" Spike gleefully wrote Fluttershy's name next to _Seagulls._ "All right. Next up is fireworks."

Right away, Widget rose up right in front of Blossom, smiling broadly. "Oy! I bet that fellow that you hired dumped us for that Las Pegasus gig, did he?"

Blossom hesitated before nodding. "I should've known he would've chased the bits."

Glitter sparkled around Widget. "I can do the—"

"No!" Blossom, Swift and Blitz shouted.

"Oy! And why not?"

The red mare groaned. "You're my friend, Widget, but I just can't trust you with explosives and neither will the committee. The _only_ way they'd even let you try is if you had a fireworks expert with you at all times."

Pinkie slid right beside Widget. "Hey! I can be that expert!"

"No!" protested the other element bearers.

"Since when have you've become an expert, Pinkie Pie?" said Twilight, casting a suspicious stare.

The party pony conjured a silver certificate with a red ribbon. "Last week, silly. I'm now certified in the field of explotology! Isn't that great?"

Twilight scanned every inch of the document; it had authentic stamps and signatures. "Um, that's, great." She then leaned close to Blossom's ear, "If you know what's good for you, I'd go with a backup plan."

"But there isn't one," she mumbled. "Firework techs don't just grow on pine trees."

Both Pinkie and Widget crowded the redhead's sights like dogs awaiting a delicious treat. Despite just meeting Pinkie today, her instincts screamed this was mixing fire and gasoline. Then again, it was either potentially cataclysmic explosions or none at all. In what may have been the first time in recorded history, this one occasion called for the former.

Blossom motioned Spike to assign fireworks to the now jubilant duo. All the others shuddered.

"Entertainment." Spike fast read the scribbles below the title. "Actually, this seems like an okay lineup. What's the issue there?"

"Cross out our headliner," Blossom answered. "That pegasi band broke up—"She rolled her eyes "—_again_. Unfortunately, they were both singers who also performed elaborate aerial dancing. Now I have two holes to fill instead of one."

Rarity squeezed Rainbow and Swift together. "You need dancers, darling? Well, here they are! You couldn't ask for a better pair! I saw how great they were with my own two eyes."

"Huh?" Rainbow craned her head toward the unicorn. "What are you talking about?"

"Come now, dear. That little celebration Pinkie threw before that big race in Cloudsdale? Surely, you remember that."

For the pegasi, that one night quickly came into focus. The lights, the song and the moves; it was a rare moment of perfect harmony of body and soul. What they recalled vividly, though, was when the party mood shifted to something slower and called for intimate contact.

They never went through with it, not then or since.

Whether this particular routine would be closer to a Wonderbolt performance or a tango, the idea struck them with stage fright. Before they could get in a word, however, Blossom instructed Spike to add their names.

"But, but, but—" Swift and Rainbow stammered.

Blossom snickered like a filly. "Oh, you two! You shouldn't be nervous at all. All you two have to do is move with the music for a few minutes. Hmmm, we probably need a coordinator for that."

Rarity squeezed the stallion and mare a second time. "I can volunteer for that! I bet I can even put together an ensemble for these two! Just tell me the theme and watch me create something _fabulous!"_

"An orchestra," Twilight chirped. "I know of a group in Canterlot that's looking for some work right now! If I can send a letter off right now, I'm sure they can be here by Friday!"

Blossom's jaw shuddered. "An orchestra? An _orchestra? _This is a beach festival, not a high society white tie affair. Besides, I already have somepony in mind to be our singer. Just add a few locals to play the instruments and add our two dancers and presto! We have ourselves a rock band!"

"A rock band?" the unicorn huffed. "Every town in Equestria does that for their summer celebrations! It's dull and uninspired thinking. We need to be more original! What could be better than combining a finely tuned orchestra and fireworks?"

"A rock band," Blossom sharply rebuked.

Twilight leaned right into her snout. "An orchestra!"

Her wings sprouted as she pressed back. "A rock band!"

"Orchestra!"

"Rock band!"

"Orchestra!"

"Rock band!"

Both turned to Spike and shouted instructions at a rate faster than he could write.

"One at a time, please," he pleaded to the cackling chickens. "You're not even making sense! Who are we going with?"

"Caw! Caw, caw!"

Approaching the vicinity were the same seagulls as before, except they had brought reinforcements; three times more than the first encounter.

Applejack gulped. "Them varmits a coming in a hurry! Fluttershy? Can you try talking to… Fluttershy?"

She tripped right into the wagon and slid under the wagon's bench. "I'm so sorry!"

"Swift!" Rainbow shook him. "We need that move of yours again!"

His eyes bulged. "Are you bonkers? I used up everything I had last time! Maybe we should retreat!"

"Retreat? Screw that! Those birds won't push me around this time! Hyaaaaah!"

She sped right into the colony, forelegs swinging for a knockout strike. Instead, the seagulls ripped off some feathers and bits of flowing rainbow hair. Ten seconds was all it took before she made a beeline for the wagon.

"Runnnnnnn!"

Before long, Blitz and his panicked passengers headed up the bumpy uphill path while their pursuers laughed and pecked them with impunity.

Seagulls one. Ponies zero.

* * *

**Author's Note**

Blossom just couldn't resist making a big debut. That's the good news.

Now for the bad. Unfortunately, I'm at a spot where I can no longer continue with this story without first finishing the Return to Flight project. If you don't know what that is, it's a revamped version of the first story of this trilogy. Long story short, my focus has shifted into wrapping up the edits and that will take a considerable amount of time. Additionally, Top Wings is receiving a much lighter refresh, mainly grammar and a few expanded scenes.

As such, this fic will be in hiatus until then. In the meantime, I will be releasing the revamped RTF/TW in pieces but only on FIM Fiction (I'm under outlaw4rc on that site). Once I'm finished, I will be posting the revisions in its entirety here with links to the original version.


End file.
